Free
by InsertStupidNameHere
Summary: The fifteen-year-old blonde had wanted nothing more than to see the world outside her own; outside of the preparatory school that kept her prisoner within its walls. When a strange group of people sail into her life, she learns more about her forgotten past, and her true identity. Later Rimahiko... Only posting the first chapter for now to see how this goes.


**Hey guys! I know you all are waiting on the next chapter of Normal, but I had this idea, and wanted to know what you guys thought of it. So, reviews are requested. For now, I'm only going to post the first one or two chapters, to see how this goes. Trust me though, it will be much longer. I also am going to focus much more on Normal than this one, until I finish what I've started. So, this will sit on the back-burner for a while.**

**Note: there'll be a mix of names from all languages, because this story deals with people from many different countries. **

* * *

She sighed. Placing the picture frame back on her desk, she gazed out the window. The picture she had been examining under the moonlight was one of a young girl, one hand in each of her parents'. It was taken some time ago, as the girl herself could not remember the occasion. She had been so young.

Her mother died when she was young as well. Now, she was gazing out the window and over the sea. She knew her father was out there somewhere in the world, traveling for his job. She subconsciously clutched the locket around her neck. He had promised to come back for her when he left her here. She had been young then, too. She was fifteen now. Practically an adult.

She spent a long time wondering when she would finally get out of this place. The ocean called to her every day, telling her to join it in its freedom. But, no. She couldn't. She was in Madame Christine's Preparatory School for Young Ladies - a boarding school. This means she never _ever_ leaves, much less travels abroad. It wasn't ladylike, as Madame Christine says. Her place was here, supposedly. But, she didn't want it to be. She wanted to see the world.

As another day of long, boring schoolwork, etiquette, and longing for things that would never be, had tired her out, she went to bed at last. Still, she couldn't help but hope, just before she dozed off, that somehow things would be different.

* * *

She woke up with a start. What had woken her up? She usually didn't have trouble sleeping. As she tried to clear the sleep out of her mind and distinguish dreams from reality, she thought she heard the wood floor creak.

She paused, listening. Hearing nothing more, she brushed it off as just the building shifting. It was on stilts, after all. It was protocol for any buildings by the sea. And as Seiyo was one of the biggest ports in the world, it was obvious that the school would need to be protected from storms. It was expected that the building would shift just a bit.

Just when her suspicions had fled and she was about to lie back down, she heard a swift motion behind her. She was about to whip around and look, she felt a strong hand press a cloth over her mouth and nose. As people do when they are surprised, she inhaled a deep breath. Her body expected clean, fresh ocean air, but instead got something thick, and suffocating. Almost instantly, her mind grew hazy, and her consciousness gave way to black.

* * *

She woke again with a hazy mind. As she tried to escape the hold sleep still had on her, she looked around at her unfamiliar surroundings. It was noisy. All surfaces of the room she was in were made of wood, and it creaked and squealed every so often. She could hear many sets of footsteps echoing on floors above. Honestly, it scared her.

Slowly, she stood. She stretched her limbs, trying to get the feeling back into them. She would need them if she were to escape. She was aware that she had been kidnapped, but it confused her as to why. She had been taught that kidnappers only wanted ransom money. Her father was certainly wealthy enough to pay a ransom, seeing as he sent his daughter to a prestigious boarding school, but he was away. Certainly, they didn't expect for him to pay, being so far away. She often got his letters months after they were written. How would word of her kidnapping reach him soon enough?

An energetic young man then walked through the door. She immediately jumped back over to the bed and covered herself in the sheets. No man, (unless she was married) should ever see her in her nightdress. It was shameful, as Madame Christine says.

"Oh, sorry to surprise you! I'm Kukai. What's your name?" She was always taught to comply with anyone who could potentially do her harm. Madame Christine says that if a thief threatened you, that instead of running, you should try to cooperate. She says that they will most likely catch you anyway, and you wouldn't want to make them angry. Rima figured this applied in her current situation. So, she was truthful.

"Mashiro Rima."

He took a step toward her, and brought his hand even closer. She didn't know why she did what she did next. She just kind of reacted. But, nonetheless, she kicked him hard in the stomach.

It wasn't until she saw his expression, that she realized his intentions. She initially expected him to be angry. But, when she realized he was only offering her a handshake, did his shocked disposition make sense. She mentally scolded herself. How could she have spent practically her entire life in a school for "Young Ladies", and be so rude as to kick someone who was offering to shake her hand? He was merely being civil, and she had reacted violently.

"Ah! I'm sorry, sir. Please excuse my misjudgment. I am a little disoriented as of the moment." She quickly apologized. The last thing she needed was to be injured. She was at enough of a disadvantage as it was.

"Ahaha! You've got quite the kick there, Mashiro!" The brunette chuckled. "I do suppose I deserved that. I should've knocked. And, I'm guessing you're not too happy about how I got you here..." He grinned. Was this guy joking!? Rima was not expecting her kidnapper to be of this personality.

"Where is 'here'?" She asked. She began feeling slightly nauseous. Why was this building so unstable?

"Oh, you mean where are we? That would be the _Ice Queen_, the fastest and best pirate ship there is." Rima was stunned. Did he say _pirate_ ship?!

"You mean I'm on a..." She couldn't finish her sentence.

"Pirate ship?" He finished for her. "Yes."

"And I'm..."

"Not still dreaming? Yes."

"And you..."

"Are an amazingly good-looking pirate? Indeed."

"Actually, I was going to say 'drugged and kidnapped me'." She spat. Now that she knew they were pirates, she need not waste manners on them.

"Well, would you have just agreed to coming with a gang of pirates if we asked, little lady?" She scowled at the 'little' part, but he did make a good point.

"I should probably tell you that my father is working abroad, and will not be able to pay the ransom you ask for a while."

"Ransom? Why would-" his eyes widened. "You don't remember _anything_, do you?"

"Remember what?"

"Do you know what your father's job is?"

"Come to think of it, no. It is not a lady's place to ask such questions."

"What if I told you he was one of the greatest pirates to ever live?"

"I would think you daft."

"Well, I don't know how else to tell you! Your daddy _is_ one of the greatest pirates to ever live. And, he is captain of this ship."

"So my father is-" She gulped air. "_here_?" She hadn't seen her father in an eternity. Now, she was standing on the same ship he was. The man called Kukai rubbed the back of his neck.

"Not exactly..."

"I don't quite follow, then."

"You see, he's been captured." he took a second to look at her with pity. "That's why we need you. The crew was getting restless without a captain, see. We also couldn't decide one among ourselves. We couldn't risk having a fight break out. So, our best option was you."

"What are you saying?"

"I need you to fill in for your father until we can rescue him."

"_Me_?! Captain a _ship_?!" She couldn't bring herself to even think of her father and his current predicament as of the moment. It was all simply too shocking.

"It's not that hard, really. All you really need to do is be there to keep the peace. Everyone else does the work. You don't lift a finger. This ship's a well-oiled machine, really. Please?"

"I really should get back to Madame Christine's Preparatory School for Young Ladies. She'll have a fit if she finds me gone!"

"But we need you if we ever hope of rescuing your father! Besides, you actually _want_ to go back to that place? It seems like a drag." Those were also some good points. She had wished for freedom every second of every day, and now that it's staring her in the face, who was she to refuse? Plus, she had already lost her mother. Was she going to just stand by and lose her father too, when she could do something to save him?

"... I suppose, it would be in my best interests to comply with your request."

"I dunno what your fancy-talk means, but that sounds like a yes to me!" This man was certainly energetic, even for a man who looked in his twenties.

"Would be you so kind as to provide a proper article of clothing?" She was well aware that she was having this conversation in her nightdress. 'How _dreadful_!' She could practically hear Madame Christine shout.

"Yeah, sure!" The man then exited the room. Rima took this time to think about the potentially life-threatening decision she had just made. She would now be captaining a crew of pirates! Oh dear. She doesn't know the first thing about pirates! Surely her own crew wouldn't hurt her, but what if she runs into another gang of pirates? She didn't know any self defense! She was a _lady_! (More or less...)

Kukai came back into the room at that moment. He had a triumphant smile on his face. In his arms were a pair of pants, a shirt, and a piece of cloth, along with what she recognized to be a pirate hat. At first, she was appalled. A lady should _never_ don a man's clothing. But, she then supposed that they didn't keep a supply of women's clothing aboard the ship, and she would rather wear this than walk around in her nightdress. As if he had seen her skeptical look, Kukai quickly apologized.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, but this is going to have to do, for now. I kinda forgot to mention one important thing." He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand, as his other handed Rima the clothing.

"And what might that be?" She was curious. She didn't know much about the world to begin with, much less anything about captaining a ship.

"The crew are very superstitious, see..."

"Yes? Please continue."

"And well, the superstition goes that women are bad luck aboard a ship, 'kay?"

"I apologize. I'm not quite following."

"It's bad luck having a woman on a ship, so we're gonna have to dress ya up like a guy if we want to keep everyone together."

"Excuse me? Pretend to be a man?!"

"Technically, not a man. You're too short. No one would ever believe that. How old are you anyways?"

"Fifteen."

"That'll do, then. We'll be able to convince everyone you're a short fifteen-year-old. That's as good as its gonna get, I suppose. You would never pass for a man." She didn't know whether to be offended, or relieved that she could never pass for one. He made it seem like a bad thing... But, Madame Christine would beg to differ. "Now, hurry up! The crew will be gettin' up any second. We can't risk them seein' you're a girl!" Just like that, he had shoved her into the adjacent room, and shut the door behind her. He was being quite hyperactive, for someone who wants to keep their topic of conversation a secret...

* * *

**What'd you guys think? I've always loved pirate stories. I've actually been sitting on this one for years. I just finally was satisfied with how I began it, so I decided to get your opinion.**

** I feel like my writing style is completely different here than it was in _Normal_. I actually enjoy this style more though. Writing from first-person can be difficult, especially when both characters are often too stubborn to admit their true feelings, even in their thoughts. I like third-person better. **

**Opinions?**


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